Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) are among the fastest-growing populations in the United States and are among the least likely to utilize behavioral health services. Organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area are utilizing unlicensed behavioral health paraprofessionals (e.g., peer support specialists, community mental health workers, lay counselors) to improve access to culturally and linguistically congruent services for AANHPIs. This report summarizes findings from interviews conducted with 15 of these organizations regarding their rationale for employing paraprofessionals, the roles paraprofessionals play, their training and compensation, their impact on clients, and the potential for scaling these models for meeting AANHPIs’ behavioral health needs. By sharing language and lived experiences with clients, paraprofessionals foster trust, reduce stigma surrounding mental health, and improve clients’ mental well-being and access to services.
